The 2026 Best Cars For Families
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Term
surround view camera systems
These camera systems show you what's all around your car on a screen, so you can see things you might miss when parking or driving slowly.
Term
charge port availability
This means the car has a place where you can plug in a cable to charge its battery if it's electric or a hybrid.
Term
automatic emergency braking
This system helps stop your car if it thinks you might crash, even if you don't press the brakes in time.
Company
NHTSA
NHTSA is a government group that tests cars to see how safe they are and shares that information with people.
Term
lane change assist
This feature watches the areas beside your car that are hard to see and warns you if it's not safe to change lanes.
Term
adaptive cruise control
This system helps keep your car at a safe distance from the car in front by slowing down or speeding up automatically.
Car
Hyundai Ioniq 5
The Ioniq 5 is a small electric SUV from Hyundai that looks modern and has lots of new technology, running only on electricity.
Car
Hyundai Palisade
The Palisade hybrid is a bigger Hyundai SUV that feels fancy and comfortable but uses both gas and electricity to save on fuel.
Term
hybrid system
A hybrid system is when a car uses both gas and electricity to help it go farther and use less fuel.
Concept
luxury vehicle in a non luxury segment
Sometimes cars that are not from fancy brands still have nice features and feel like luxury cars, even though they cost less.
Car
Kia Carnival
The Kia Carnival is a family van that has lots of space inside and is good for carrying people and stuff. It also has a version that uses both gas and electricity to save fuel.
Car
Toyota Sienna
The Toyota Sienna is a family van that uses both gas and electricity to save fuel. It’s known for being reliable and good for families.
Concept
interior space and cargo space
Interior space is how much room there is inside the car for people, and cargo space is how much room there is for stuff like bags or groceries.
Concept
EV feel
An EV feel means the car drives smoothly and quietly, like an electric car, especially when starting or going slow.
Concept
midsize pickup truck
A midsize pickup truck is a medium-sized truck that’s easier to drive and park than big trucks but still good for carrying stuff.
Concept
full size pickup truck
A full size pickup truck is a big truck that can carry and tow a lot, good for families who need a strong vehicle.
Term
subcompact SUV
A subcompact SUV is a small SUV that is bigger than a small car but still easy to drive in the city. It has more space than a small car but less than bigger SUVs.
Term
midsize SUV
A midsize SUV is a bigger SUV that has lots of room inside for people and things. Families like them because they can carry more stuff and people comfortably.
Term
daily driver
A daily driver is the car you use every day to get around, like going to work or school. It needs to be reliable and easy to use.
Concept
safety ratings
Safety ratings tell you how safe a car is in crashes or accidents. They help you know which cars protect people the best.
Term
federal tax credit
The federal tax credit is money the government gives back to people who buy electric cars, making them cheaper. If this credit changes, it can make electric cars cost more or less.
Term
charging infrastructure
Charging infrastructure means the places where you can plug in and recharge an electric car. Having lots of these spots makes owning an electric car easier.
Concept
vehicle redesign
A vehicle redesign means the car gets a big update with new looks and features to make it better and more modern.
Car
Mazda CX-5
The Mazda CX-5 is a small SUV that is fun to drive and has a nice inside, making it good for families who want something practical and comfortable.
Concept
water spots
Water spots happen when water dries on your car and leaves tiny marks or dirt behind. These spots can make your car look dirty or stained.
Company
Chemical Guys
Chemical Guys is a company that makes products to help clean and protect your car, like soaps and waxes.
LIVE
Hello, and welcome to the Truth about Cars podcast.
I am Tim Ealy, the managing editor, and this week we're discussing the best cars for families
in 2026.
We dig into that with Zach Dole from US News & World Report, the NT-Tech contributor Matthew
Guy and I discussed NASCAR at Las Vegas, and exterior cleaning products for your car.
But first, we're for a sponsor, eBay Motors.
This message comes from eBay.
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This week on the Truth about Cars podcast, we are with Zach Dole from US News & World
Report.
He is the vehicle testing editor.
Zach, how are you today?
I'm good, Tim.
Thanks for having me.
Yeah, thanks for coming on.
So what we're talking about, and we did this actually last year, so if you're a listener
and you're hearing deja vu, we did this with Zach's colleague, Alex Quarton, last year.
Is US News & World Report's top vehicles for families?
So we're doing 2026 as opposed to 2025, obviously.
So Zach, can you kind of walk us through, let's start by walking us through methodology
that you use to figure out which vehicles are best for families?
Of course.
So we kind of keyed in on a few things.
We wanted to make sure that the vehicles were safe, reliable, and had plenty of space and
comfort features.
So those are kind of the core tenets of our ranking methodology.
We also wanted to make sure that they were offering features that families value most.
So surround view camera systems, automatic emergency braking, heated seats, charge port
availability.
So there's a lot of granular things that went into the rankings, but we feel really, really
happy with what we ended up with them.
There's some really good options here.
How do you do the safety?
Are you looking at IHS testing results or something like that?
Yeah, totally.
So we have IHS results, also the NHTSA results, and then the feature availability between the
standard and available features.
So if a vehicle offered something as standard like adaptive cruise and maybe lane change
assist, that would be a higher preference than a vehicle that would maybe limit it to
something on the options list further down.
OK, so you had 116 new cars, SUVs, trucks, and many vans to look at.
And then you came up with 14 classes.
So one per class, 14 cars, obviously.
So anything that stood out for you, I always ask this question whenever anyone is going
over a list, whether it's data driven or something voted on or a little bit of both.
You know, anytime it's a top car list or anything like that, I always ask, what stood out?
So what stood out in ways good and what stood out ways bad?
What car surprised you that you didn't think would do as well as they did?
And vice versa, cars you thought might win an award to be a finalist and didn't make it.
And this can include finalists, too, not just the winners.
Yeah, so there was I would say there were any that like surprised me that they got on.
But I was a little bit intrigued about just the breadth of Hyundai vehicles in the SUV
categories that made it.
I mean, I know, you know, we've been in this industry for a long time and Hyundai has had
this like meteoric rise in quality and vehicles advance.
I mean, they absolutely dominated the SUV component of this of our awards with wins
for the Tucson, Tucson hybrid, Palisade hybrid and the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9 EVs.
So basically all but one or two SUVs on our list are are going to be from from Hyundai in those categories.
OK, OK, yeah.
So so why do you think that is?
Like I mentioned, I think it's really been the the jumps in quality over the last 10, 15 years.
I mean, they're now, you know, best in class or at least in the top three in in a lot of those categories.
So I think that the great example here is the Tucson.
It's so well rounded.
It's affordable.
You can you can get a Tucson in the 30 to $40,000 range very easily.
Even the hybrid model.
Great feature availability, comfort, almost class leading space.
And with the fuel efficiency of the hybrid system, I think that's really kind of the no brainer of the list.
But, you know, and sort of, you know, that's more economical option.
You jump up to the Palisade and that's I would argue kind of a luxury vehicle in a in a non luxury segment.
I mean, really, really well rounded.
And Hyundai dominating both of the EVs in this in this list, the compact with the five and and midsize with the nine.
You know, I would say their.
EVs are kind of the they're kind of right up there with Tesla.
You know, Tesla still has like a range advantage with the with the Model Y.
But the Inak five, I mean, I think if you're if you're going for an electric vehicle,
the Inak five is kind of like right there after after Model Y and same with the Inak nine.
Really good range estimates out of the three row, you know, it's a bit of a pricier vehicle.
But with the amount of tech, it's bringing comfort features.
It's it's just such a compelling option.
And it's not trusting the hundred grand mark like, you know, some of the other big three row EVs.
Yeah, yeah, I probably should have phrased the question a little bit better.
I should have probably asked why Hyundai has made so many strides.
But that's probably another discussion we don't have time for today,
because we could probably spend the whole segment just on what Hyundai Kia and Genesis
have gone from budget automobiles that are easy to mock to to quality quality cars.
So looking at the list here as well.
You have the Kia Carnival as best minivan with the Toyota Santa, Toyota Sienna,
excuse me, being a finalist, how come two other two other strong minivan,
so Honda Odyssey and the the only product Chrysler sells right now, the Pacifica didn't make it.
I know the Odyssey is getting along in the tooth and that might be an issue,
but the Pacifica is still pretty strong.
So what did Kia and Toyota have over those two?
Yeah, so the the Carnival, I think, is is the great all arounder in the segment.
It, you know, now it's got the hybrid option, but for the price for the interior space,
we think it's it's the best option.
Like you mentioned, the Odyssey is getting a bit older.
Even the Pacifica is getting a little bit older.
I know they're refreshing it for this upcoming refreshers coming this year at some point.
Yeah, so, I mean, it's such a toss up between Carnival and Sienna.
They're both really great options.
I think the I like to see now a lot personally,
but the driving experience of the carnival is a little bit nicer.
I think the interior quality also a bit nicer and and just you get more standard features,
you know, so you could get into sort of a base model carnival,
and it's still going to be a really family friendly vehicle where some of the more desirable stuff.
You got an option up with the Sienna and and which is then more expensive to begin with anyway.
So I think the value option really put the carnival over for us.
But to be honest, both of those are really, really good options.
And then looking at the list as well, the there's not many cars anymore.
Everything is across over your categories across your only two car categories
are midsize and hybrid.
And I wanted to address that in a second because there's I think a few cars being left out here.
But looking at the car segment at midsize, it's the Honda Accord.
And the best hybrid is the Honda Accord hybrid.
The finalists in both categories is Honda Sonata.
So what happened to the venerable Toyota Camry,
which is almost always mentioned in the same breath as the Accord.
And in my opinion, has gotten to be a better car over the most recent generations.
How did Hyundai win over maybe something we already talked about with Hyundai,
but how did Hyundai win over Toyota for finalists there?
Yeah, so there's some granular, very minute details
that have put certain vehicles over them than others.
And I deferred to our rankings manager, who has done a lot of the heavy lifting on these.
But in some instances, the interior space and cargo space have put one vehicle over another.
Like you mentioned, they're really all fantastic.
Both of those models are fantastic Accord hybrid and the now only hybrid Camry.
But there has been some interior dimensional differences that have put one over the other.
So that may have been a big factor there.
I do believe the Accord's backseat is a couple inches in legroom better than the Camry,
but I'd have to look back on that.
Either way, both of them obviously very good family vehicles.
The Accord hybrid, I think the driving experience is a little bit better.
It has that like EV feel almost at the low end.
But that's more of a differentiation in how those systems are developed.
I think if I could jump to it, I think the trucks is really what got me excited this year
because over the last 10 years or so, we've really seen the shift in families
maybe having a truck for that someone's work vehicle.
But then we've got the minivan or the big SUV for the family vehicle.
Well, all of a sudden trucks are really refined now, but more efficient and obviously a lot more
expensive. But they've kind of, I don't want to say replaced some SUVs as family vehicles,
at least in the running when you drive around suburbia.
I mean, it's almost every other vehicle is a pickup truck, depending on where you live.
So we went with the Honda Ridgeline in the midsize segment
and the Toyota Tundra in the full size segment for our best pickup trucks for families.
And we feel really strongly about those.
Yeah. Okay. So then bouncing back to cars for a second, we will take a quick break after this.
I got a two-parter for you when it comes to cars. So you have the midsize car category in the hybrid
car category. And I assume the hybrid car category may have pulled another size segments,
but there's not a compact car segment, which kind of surprised me because there are a lot of compact
cars on the market. It's not all crossover dominated. You still have your Honda Civics,
your Toyota Corollas, et cetera. And then maybe you don't have luxury cars because the price
point is not quite so family friendly, but there's not really a large car category here.
And again, there's still enough large cars out there, not as many as there used to be,
obviously, but there's still a few larger four-door vehicles out there that are
more car than crossover. Any reason why you don't really have anything for those categories?
Yeah. So I'll address the second one first. There's just been fewer and fewer of them.
And the ones that kind of do exist become more crossover-y.
And it was harder to pull a definitive number one in a segment where there might only be
two or three. So the participation trophy, we didn't want to award something just because
it's the only one still in that segment, even though it might be a good model.
But you make a really great point about compact cars. So I'm always suggesting compact cars to
people when they're saying, hey, what should I buy? They just aren't generally the best option for
families. I think you can outgrow them very quickly. And that's kind of our reason why we
haven't included subcompact SUVs because while they are great and practical and flexible,
I think you're really limiting yourself if you buy one and that if you have maybe one or two kids,
you're going to start wanting something more substantial. And that's kind of where the midsize
cars and the compact SUVs and midsize SUVs really take over. We see them as being just a more
practical option for families. And there's some price overlap at the lower end of those vehicles
and at the higher end of the compact car and SUVs. So I think there's enough there for really
anyone in the $30,000 range to find good options here. Yeah. Yeah. And I suppose you could also
put some of those compact cars and subcompact SUVs into your best cars or teens awards.
So anyway, with that, we are going to go ahead and take a quick break. I catch
a word from our sponsors and we'll be right back here with Zach Dahl from US News on the
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And we're back in the Truth About Cars podcast with Zach Dahl from US News and World Report
discussing the 2026 US News best cars for families. Again, for our listeners who that might sound
familiar, we did this with the US News last year too. So this is you following up one year later
with the next year's awards. So it's not just you're not hearing things, you're not experiencing
deja vu. So anyway, we're talking about best family cars. And Zach, I wanted to ask you in a
bigger picture question we've been kind of picking on not picking up but drilling down on some of
the categories and some of the winners and finalists on your list. When you put this list together,
we talked at the outset about looking at safety, reliability, fuel economy, all the things that
a family buyer would want. You know, someone who's got children they're transporting to and from school
or to, you know, family of two or three kids, whatever. Obviously, you know, people who are
buying a sports car or something like that are thinking a little differently even if they have
kids, of course. But anyway, when you pick these cars and you're looking at all these
different categories, what feedback have you heard from actual car buyers and car owners? And
as automotive journalists, we test a lot of cars, whether you get loaners at home or through your
office or on a press event. And we all think we know what families want. But we all have different
opinions and different stages of our own, our own life, our own families. So what are you hearing
from the actual people who write into us news or maybe talk to you when they found out what your
job is saying, Hey, you know what, you guys should do this next time you do these awards, or you
overlooked this last time, or you hit that on the head. What kind of feedback do you get from buyers?
I'm sorry for the long question there. No, no, that's, that's a great question because
we really listened this year because we expanded our categories. A lot of previous sort of comments,
criticism we got is, why aren't there enough sort of like affordable vehicles or why aren't you
covering more EVs or why aren't you pickup trucks was the other one where a lot of people
were asking for pickup truck options. And that wasn't something that was totally on our radar.
But after looking into it, we realized how important that is as a family vehicle. So it was
really sort of expanding, expanding the rankings this year was, was our goal. And the, the models
that weren't previously representative were we only had one electric SUV now that's two with
compact and midsize added the plug in hybrid SUV. So the CX90 PHE one in that category.
And then the, the two pickup trucks mentioned the Tundra and the Ridgeline. Tundra was the
kind of came out a big winner because it's safety ratings from, from both of those
agencies were considerably better than, than all the domestics. And that, that was a bit of a surprise.
But, you know, having driven that myself, I really enjoyed the Tundra as a great sort of all
arounder. So we're happy that we can, we can present you guys with some trucks as, as really
great options for families now. Yeah. Now, do you do any research? I don't know if you do any
research on how people actually use their vehicles are, in other words, you know, we see a lot of
commercials where families are outdoors for certain brands, or you see others where families are
doing more suburban type stuff, you know, just hanging around, going to dinner, hanging around
the house, whatever. Do you do, do you do any research to see how families are using their
vehicles, whether it's towing for maybe towing a boat to the lake housing the weekend, going
camping or canoeing, just shuttling the kids to sports practice, or do you, because that's
something you don't really have the resources or time for? We engage with everyone who writes in.
So if you're, if you're listening to this now, write in and tell us what you think.
We haven't done a whole lot of, like, market research into how the vehicles are being used
at this time. We'd love to. It's just, it's a big, it's a big thing to get into once you're,
once you're there. Yeah. And then you mentioned that you kind of expanded EVs a little bit and
still have just a couple on the list and a couple, obviously, finalists as well.
Where do you see, and this is me more getting your opinion as opposed to
anything data driven, where do you see the EV situation? It's something I've been talking
about a lot with guests in the podcast lately because of the lack of the federal tax credit,
the changes in the EV market with terrorists and everything else. And some people are looking at
the EV market and saying, oh, it's kind of, you know, it's kind of slowing down. Others are
saying, well, it's just, it'll be okay as range gets better and all sorts of things. So where do
you, where do you see, I guess the best way to phrase this is if you're looking at this list
next year, how many more EVs do you think will be on it? It's crazy. I mean, it's fascinating from
like a macro perspective and just seeing how the playing field is changing and kind of what's
surviving. You know, I saw that just this morning, EX30 was just chopped. And so, yeah, I mean,
by this time next year, there'll almost certainly be a handful of other models that don't make it.
But I mean, I think the EVs are, I mean, they're certainly here to stay. There's plenty of people
who've adopted EVs and are, you know, loving it. There's other people who it might not still be
the for them. And I think the charging infrastructure needs to get a lot better for it to become like
the no brainer. Yeah, that's probably like 10 years minimum off between, you know, let's say a compact
electric SUV and just a gas SUV being like same cost. And it's just the EVs so much more efficient
to run. It's, you know, better driving experience. I think we're still ways off, but it's going to be,
I think it's interesting nonetheless. I don't have a crystal ball. But I'd imagine that the big
players are still going to be here. We might see some deferred products where, you know,
instead of it being maybe a 2026 or seven, all of a sudden something's coming out in 29,
where, you know, the development money might have moved away from some of those. And I think if
anything, it's going to push hybrids towards the development cycle where that's really the vehicle
that most people could benefit from. You know, when if more automakers are putting their money in
hybrids and just going with existing technologies and just making the vehicles we have more efficient,
I think a lot of people are looking at that instead of a hybrid being this kind of
bizarro, you know, complex thing. It's almost like it's just so widely accepted now. I think
hopefully we'll see a lot more hybrids. Hopefully we'll see more EVs. But yeah, I don't know. I
think it's a fascinating time for sure. Speaking of crystal balls, you said it would be nicely to
my next question. So is that time of year again, where we are just past the Detroit and Chicago
auto shows and didn't have much in the way of new product unveiling of those shows, but the New York
Auto Show is coming. By the time our listeners hear this, we'll be right up at the top of the
show. And so the, I'm trying to figure out, I lost my train of thought there. Let me bring it back in.
So anyway, we'll have some unveilings at the New York Auto Show. There's been some news already.
We have an idea of what automakers are going to be doing. I can't speak to it, not because of any
embargoes, just because I don't have a lot of details yet, but I have got a few ideas. I think
we know for sure that Volkswagen is going to be showing a new Atlas and Infinity has a new vehicle.
I think a QX-65 is being teased. And then I've heard some stuff about concepts out of Toyota and
Hyundai. I don't have details. That's why I was kind of stumbling a little because I was being a
little bit vague because I just don't know. But anyway, we also know that there's been some new
model introductions obviously already. 2027 Kia Telluride just drove the new Jeep Cherokee not too
long ago. We've had a few other first drives over the past few weeks. So looking at this list
and then thinking towards next year, what vehicles do you think will be in contention,
maybe either finalists or winning a category next year, whether they're brand new or heavily
redesigned? I'd imagine that there's going to be some some carryovers for sure. A lot of these
vehicles are really sort of great all-rounders in their class, which I think makes them good for
families. I don't want to pin anyone down in particular, but you know, I think if you're,
you know, there's also some vehicles on here that might be a little bit older in their development
cycle and they could be facing a redesign very soon. So, you know, I'm not going to say which
ones, but I think, you know, listeners can maybe guess which are going to be redesigned soon and
may inevitably show up back on this list again. Yeah, yeah. Sorry, go ahead.
Go ahead. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cut you off. No, that's all I have. I don't want to pin
anyone down to have these back on the list again next year, but there's certainly some
there's some vehicles here that could be redesigned very soon and
that they could be 2027 winners as well. Yeah, and just based on the articles we published on
T-TAC recently and some of the vehicles I didn't drive contributed to drove, but we have a 2027
Kia Telluride review. A little bit of shameless plugging here. 2026 Subaru Trail Saker and
Uncharted and then I drove the Grand Cherokee L and the in the new Cherokee last month and
we also had somebody drive the 2026 CX-5. All of those are family type vehicles. I haven't driven
anything but the Jeeps out of that mix, but the review I read and edited suggests that the Kia
Telluride will probably be on that list again. I don't think the two Jeeps are quite good enough
to get there. We'll see. But yeah, that was just my personal take. So we're at the time of year
where we get towards spring and summer and there becomes more first drives as the weather gets a
little better throughout the country and there's been some vehicles that I haven't just not driven
yet or no one at T-TAC is driven as well. So there is new product out there and that's why I wanted
to ask that question about the crystal ball you'd have for next year. So with that, Zach, we're just
about kind of I think kind of coming upon time here. Is there anything else you wanted to talk
about that we didn't get to when it comes to this article, this 2026 US News Best Cars for Families?
I think we pretty much hit it all. If you want to read these reviews and more cars.usnews.com is
the website. We've got these vehicles and hundreds of more and yeah, we're just really happy to be
here and thank you for chatting with me today about it. Yeah, thanks for hopping on. It was your
turn for plugging US News. So with that, we've been chatting with Zach Dole, the vehicle testing
editor over at US News and World Report. Thank you so much for your time, Zach. Thanks for having me.
This message comes from eBay. The worst part about loving cars might just be buying them
and all the parts from Toyotas to Aston Martins. eBay has thousands of cars and the largest online
selection of vehicle parts and accessories. eBay things people love. If you like what you hear
on the T-TAC podcast, please go ahead and leave us a review. You can also find us online at
T-TAC.com. That is T-T-A-C.com or the Truth About Cars All Spill Out.com. We are your home for car
reviews, car news, opinions, and so so much more. Just about always in the Truth About Cars podcast,
we discuss the stuff that we use in our homes, in our cars, cleaning products, tools, that sort of
thing. And today we have Matthew Guy with us, T-TAC contributor extraordinaire, with us to discuss
that. And Matthew, how are you doing? Hi, I'm doing great. How are you doing? So what do you have for
us today? Well, we're talking about car cleaning products. And that might seem super basic, but
I think that's heading into spring. I mean, it's almost spring as we've recorded this just a few
days away. And I was here like it where I'm at. But anyway, carry on. Oh, I know. We definitely had
fake spring where I lived about a week ago. And for about three days, it was, you know,
temperature wise in the 70s for Fahrenheit measures. And everyone was washing their cars,
including me. So I've got this on the brain. So I just wanted to talk about it. Makes sense. Yeah.
And the products that I use that, you know, you can get on places like eBay,
really easily delivered right to your door. You haven't got to go out to the parts store
and pick these things up. And the one I know that sometimes people say, Oh, Matthew, you know,
you're just buying the branding. But I find Chemical Guys as a brand is really,
really trustworthy for high quality car cleaning products. And I use them. I mean,
this is not sponsored in any way by Chemical Guys. I just have landed on that brand as something
I know is going to work. And I've had a string of black cars in a row, right? I mean, the challenger
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right? So there's minerals in it, and then you end up with a lot of water spots. So
I found that Chemical Guys have been really, really good, those products for at least reducing the
number of hard water spots that I get on my cars after it dries, of course. And sometimes, you know,
you just want a quick wash and you don't want to mess around with going over with a chamois to take
all the water off. That's another way to get rid of your water spots before they even form.
But I've used Mr. Pink, which is, you know, some Super Suds shampoo. They market it as a
superior surface cleanser. And I would definitely agree with that. It's not overly cheap, probably
at least $25 or $30 per gallon would be the going rate. I see it, you know, on eBay as well for a
lot more than that. I'm some sellers, but don't, you know, some sellers will try to market up,
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a full, you know, a quart of it every time you are washing your car, just a cup, not even will
do the trick. And it doesn't matter if you're washing it with a pressure washer, which we've
talked about just actually last week, we were talking about some pressure washing tools.
Or if you're washing it with, you know, the two bucket method by hand,
I find that this stuff suds up really good. It doesn't claim to be non-toxic, but I have read
that it is less toxic than some other products that you can buy, which is important if this stuff
is, you know, washing down the driveway into the sewers and absolutely things like that where you
live. So I find that that's really good. And just as a side, it smells like bubblegum.
So that's, decide your own if that's good or bad. I don't mind it, right? Sometimes when you go to
an automatic car wash and you can smell the scent of the, that they're using, right?
As long as it's not like bubblegum where bubblegum goes bad after 10 seconds of chewing it.
You're exactly right. Do you remember as a kid, you'd have like whatever it was, the double bubble
or, you know, and stuff like that. Yeah, you're right. 10 seconds is gone. You're exactly right.
But I find Chemical Guys to be really, really trustworthy that brand for not just the exterior
stuff here, like the main soap, but then other polishes, wheel cleaners, tire shine,
stuff like that to be really, really good. We'll focus in on tire shine on a different
episode of this podcast. But there are a couple of different kinds. One is like a foam. And one
is just a spray that you wipe on and wipe off. And I like the foam a little bit better. So,
but sticking with Chemical Guys, picking that up off eBay is really, really easy.
Invest in good stuff like this for cleaning your car's listeners. I know it's tempting
just to reach under the sink and go for some household stuff that you have just because it's
there. Don't do that, because if you care about the polish and you care about the structure of
the paint on your car at all, please don't use residential or home. Yeah, I know. They're meant
for different surfaces. Bingo, exactly, right? That's the words I was looking for. Thank you, Tim.
They are meant for different surfaces. So, palm olive and dawn and that type of stuff is meant
for your dishes. And it will react very harshly on your car. On your car, if you finish, if you
try to use it there. So, invest the money, you know, save up if you got to in order to spend 25
or 30 bucks on a gallon of this Mr. Pink from Chemical Guys and run with it. I think it's worth
I know it's worth the money. And I also know that everything is more expensive these days. So,
if I'm going to choose to spend some of my heroin money on something that's arguably a luxury item,
it's going to be this type of stuff because I know it's a joke, but a clean car runs better, right?
Right. Yeah. And also, you mentioned water spots at the outset here, too. As someone who used to
wash cars as part of my job at a dealership, like you said, getting everything dry at the
chamois as quickly as possible is the best way to prevent water spots. But using, we used to use a
spot-free rinse, which is basically, I think, what you're talking about here, kind of the same thing.
You know, a spot-free rinse in the car wash machine itself. And then, yeah, like you said,
products that prevent spotting that you can spray on. Because what happens is, and if you wash your
car, you don't dry it quick enough, you get water spots because you just have little pieces of dirt
that are that the rain drops or the water drops form around. And when the water dries, the dirt
stays. So these products will help you prevent that. It sure will. And, you know, maybe later on,
we'll talk about those. If you do have the time, some of those products that you can use just to
go over your car afterward softly without scratching the paint, because that is something that is
absolutely possible to do if you're using the wrong sort of cloth or if you're using the wrong
sort of product to try to get rid of those water spots. But as for all this exterior stuff, I mean,
Chemical Guys has a huge selection. Now, just focus on the Mr. Pink, because that's what I've been
using, it's what I like, and it's what has worked for me. So highly recommend without any sort of
sponsorship. Highly recommend that for our listeners who are looking to keep their cars clean.
Excellent, excellent. So with that, we'll go ahead and wrap up this week's stuff we've
segment here and the Truth About Cars podcast. Thanks, Matthew. Thank you very much.
Here on the Truth About Cars podcast, we speak about NASCAR just about every week on track,
off track, and all the other actions going on. And as usual, we have T-Tech contributor,
Matthew Guy, with us to discuss that. Matthew, how was your NASCAR experience this past weekend at
Las Vegas? I was back from Sin City, baby, or at least watching it on TV. Yeah, I didn't mean to
make it sound like a great show there. We could have our listeners thinking that we do fly off.
Yeah, I wish. Yeah, for real. But I mean, this week, we were watching a well-known track and it
was won by a well-known driver. So I don't think there were any surprises. And we rather predicted
this last week, you know, that this would be a bellwether for these types of tracks,
seeing if you're going to find some sort of SVG type driver. And what was kind of,
I saw a meme over the weekend, because if I remember correctly for race results,
SVG finished dead last, 36th. And it certainly finished, drove better than I ever could. This
is not a knock against SVG, but we just spent three or four weeks talking about, hey, you know,
he's finally figured out the oval tracks and everything like that. And then this happens.
So I'm not writing them off in any way, shape, or form. But this is a long way of saying there
weren't many surprises this week out of Las Vegas. Denny Hamlin won. And this was interesting. I mean,
this is the first win of the year, obviously, third at Vegas and his 61st career win. So that's
even for 10th on the all-time list, moving into some pretty, you know, passing Kevin Harvick.
Bingo, right? So I mean, he's there with the rest of the elites. And this is cool. Just
afjaseki.com, 61st victory in 726 cup series races. So I mean, that's almost 10%.
Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I don't know the numbers I've taught my head, but
I mean, either I just happened to be looking at this while we're talking, right?
Yeah, yeah. And an emotional info Hamlin to his first win, I think, since last year when he went
through, you know, he lost his father in a tragic fire, had another child. And then, of course,
everything with 2311 racing in the lawsuit, and then ask our lawsuit. And of course,
obviously he doesn't drive for 2311. He owns 2111. So, you know, in a way,
slight connection to Tyler Ruddick's success earlier this year, even though they're not teammates.
Obviously, Hamlin is involved in owning a different team, but he drives for Joe Gibbs.
It's a little confusing. So there's a connection there somehow, I think. And then I'm not quite
sure how it works. But I'm being a little facetious. But, you know, also, I think in general, you know,
we said it kind of last week, and we talked about Vegas a little bit,
previewing it. And we kind of thought, oh, you know, it's the bread and butter track. I think
there's eight or nine of those mile and a half tracks on the out of the 30 something races they do.
And obviously, some of the tracks they get to twice in a year. So that's why the numbers,
that's why the numbers work. But, you know, we often kind of say these mile and a half tracks
can be a little predictable. And I guess it kind of was on Sunday. I don't mean that necessarily in
a bad way. It just sort of was. It was it was a straightforward is the word I like to use, I think.
There weren't many cautions. I don't have the numbers in front of me. I think there was only
one non-stage break caution, maybe two, I think it was just one. You know, it was a predictable,
when I say predictable, that's the wrong word. It was a competitive driver who won the race. It
wasn't someone who came out of nowhere. Yes. It wasn't someone who had, you know, sometimes you
get a guy who's a back marker or a mid-pack guy who doesn't win a lot, and they just have a really
good day. And maybe they maybe they had a fast car that day, or maybe they get a little luckier
both. That didn't happen. We had a guy who's running who's running near the front most of the
most races in the series, unless he's caught in a wreck or something. Hamlin's usually in that top
top 10 top 15. So, you know, you've got a veteran driver who, I don't know how many years he has
left. He's 44 years old or 45 years old, but he's, you know, he still probably has a few years left.
And he's, you know, he's veteran driver who's always running near the front wins the race.
Again, pretty wreck free. The race kind of unfolded, you know, probably the way most fans would
expect. The only thing that was really to me interesting, and again, I should, well all races
are interesting, and all races are a little bit unpredictable. So I gotta be careful how I phrase
this, because even the most quote unquote, predictable race, racing is a sport with so many
variables and so many weird things can happen. You know, more, I think more than stick and ball
sports, right? You have obviously wrecks, and then you have mechanical failures. You don't really
worry about that as much in the stick and ball sports. You know, okay, yeah, baseball bat may
break, and hockey stick may break, and maybe a guy's slap shot goes sideways, and you've got
luck and hockey and football can bounce the wrong way in a fumble. So you do have, you know, luck
and variables and all the other stick and ball sports. I just think it's magnified in racing. So
to me, there's no such thing as a quote unquote, normal race. This is as close as we ever gonna get
when it's a front runner, few cautions, the race unfolds kind of the way that all the analysts
thought it would before the race, you know, wind obviously had an effect on this race, although
I don't know how much it really ended up mattering in the end. Unlike IndyCar, where IndyCar was
pushed up, the start time was pushed up to to accommodate for dangerous winds in Texas.
Yeah, this race was was was pretty straightforward. The only thing that really kind of caught my
eye was the very end. I think a few more laps chase Elliott might have gotten past Hamlin. He
had a good run towards the end. Hamlin kind of fended him off. He didn't even really have to
block him. He just, you know, Elliott kind of came out, came at him, and then there was a little
bit of pulling away on Hamlin's part. And I think Hamlin may have got him, or excuse me, Elliott
may have got Hamlin, had the race been five or 10 laps longer, but it wasn't. So we talked about
Denny Hamlin getting a 61st victory, which is a huge milestone. It's really hard to win in any race,
especially NASCAR. And again, emotional went for him. He was choked up a little in the post race
interview. And, you know, I think good thing, good for Denny Hamlin. Obviously, now we also
can talk about this. And I think we should a little more in a couple of weeks, Matthew, but
we're starting to see the point picture form because we're now in a races in, into the season
where if you're not doing, if you're not near the front, you're going to really, you still have
plenty of time to catch up, but it's going to be tricky, especially without the win you're in
format of last year's playoffs. So I think that's a subject we should hit a little bit later on,
maybe in three or four weeks. But, but yeah, I think we, you know, kind of saw,
we kind of saw a fairly standard, fairly quiet, fairly straightforward race in Las Vegas.
I think you're right. And you talked about Elliott, you know, just, say, being 10 laps or so,
another 10 laps. And you're right. Because within, I'm just looking at some of the stats here with
about 10 laps to go, there was like a 1.6 second lead. And then it was cut to 0.7 within 10 laps.
And then half a second lead with two laps to go. And then eventually, like you said,
check or flag, with about, with about half a second, half a second lead. So I think you're
right. I think, you know, just given that it did seem that the, that the number nine car was a bit
better on the long runs. And you might have been able to pull it off if the race was a little longer,
there was, you know, some sort of, some sort of changes to the length of the race, if it was a
good point about how a lot of the season has been dominated by something to do with Denny Hamlin,
right? Because Denny Hamlin is the parent owner of the 45 team, which won those first three races.
And then Hamlin himself, who drives for a different team, won this race here today. So you're exactly
right. And I mean, that's, you know, got to, it's got to be reaffirming for Hamlin, at least,
right? Because I mean, he was, say what, say what to anyone, if you like him or not, he was,
in my opinion, three laps away from his first title, right? At the end of last year, and just
absolutely scuppered by an ill timed caution. So that, I'm sure that he was feeling a certain way
over the break, probably took him a few weeks to, he said this, right? It took him a few weeks
to feel like driving again. You know, just after the, and everything that happened personally with
as well, right? You're really absolutely brutal things that you would never want anyone to go
through. And, but now we find himself in victory lane, which is a good thing, I think for the sport
and the sport itself. And then just as a, as a human, right? I mean, after everything that he's,
he's gone through. But like you said, not a predictable, not predictable is the wrong word.
But as you said, I thought you phrased it really well. There was no problems with inspections
of the 11th. So he is officially the winner. And we're looking forward ahead to,
we're looking forward ahead to Darlington next week. I know that it's not officially,
they used to do mandatory, not mandatory, but they used to promote retro paint schemes at Darlington
for this race, something they got away from NASCAR, got away from last year or so. And I've seen a
couple of really good ones coming up for the next race at Darlington, looking forward to seeing them.
And just as a, you know, longtime fan, I do appreciate the, the retro ones. And then as for
what we saw in Vegas, I'm looking at a picture here of the nine car and the one that they've
chosen to show as that has been the official, you know, that, that was, that was driven at
Las Vegas shows the 11 car doing his victory burnout in the, in the background.
It was a long burnout. There was some concern he might not be able to get to the start finish line
without walking because the tires were on their way out. But they were, you're exactly right.
And I just love that the, the official picture that they've got here of the nine car for the race
has the 11 doing that enormous burnout in the background. But he earned it. I mean,
the 11 earned it after everything that has transpired over the last say three months.
And we didn't even mention the lawsuit. No, not really. Well, I did. Oh, you did. Yes. I did.
I touched on it briefly, but back to Hamlin too, before we get into anything with Darlington,
I did forget to mention he did have a speeding penalty early, but it was such, such an early
part of the race was the first stage break caution. He had plenty of time to recover from that. So
I was going to say, it's just kind of funny. People always think of Vegas being wild and
weird, just as a place to visit, let alone racing. And one of the, one of the stranger cities in
this country had a fairly normal NASCAR race. I did want to mention too, it was funny. I cannot
remember who it was now. One driver, it was a Chase Briscoe or Christopher Bell tweeted out
that he was pulled over on the way to the Speedway for, I don't know if he received a ticket or a
warning, but a driver. Oh, yes, you're right. Yeah. Okay. I've ever seen that on Twitter,
over the, during the race. And then I forgot, and maybe I actually mentioned during the broadcast,
I cannot remember, but it was just kind of funny. You know, we always talk about automotive journalism
when we have a track day, don't speed you in the way to the track. You can speed as much as you
want when you get in the track. And then of course, it's a guy who goes 200 miles an hour for a living,
gets pulled over, probably doing 10 or 15 over. Honestly, I don't know all the details,
all I saw was a tweet. I don't even know if it was for speeding, could have been something else,
you know, a failed tail light, a poor turn, a blown stop sign, whatever. But
it is always, I always get a kick out of it when a race car driver who's, who's doing these high
speeds for a living on a racetrack speeds that most, many of us will never, ever get to see
as a driver or passenger, most of us probably, and then they get pulled over for like five miles
an hour over the limit, you know. And I was just reading here on thefrontstretch.com real quick.
I mean, as you mentioned it, I forgot all about that. Thank you for bringing that up. Yeah,
it's just a funny thing. It's not, it's not a big deal. I'm not going to like,
it's not a moral thing here or anything. It's just funny. Oh my God, no, no, it's funny.
And here's a quote, quote from Briscoe. He said, I think that I was 0.4 miles per hour over on
pit road, but it was 12 over on the street. I'm surprised they pulled them for 12 hours.
Sometimes you can get away with that, depending on how fast you're going.
Usually, depending on where you are and how fast you're going, 12 over on the freeway you'll get.
Probably, depending on the speed limit. 12 over in an urban area, maybe not. If it's kind of,
if it's residential, especially, you know, but it's just, that's just funny. So
it was speeding. It wasn't, it wasn't a license plate issue or a failed tail light.
Okay. Or turn signal. Yeah, that's funny. It was actual speed. Yeah. So that's, and it says,
I don't know, again, just to talk about accuracy and stuff like that, but question to
Bristol, you get a speeding ticket in Vegas. Yes, I did say Briscoe. So that is, I do always get
the chucks out of that because like you said, the lads are right there doing 200 miles an hour.
And well, freeway speed of 70 is going to feel pretty slow. Yeah, that's very true.
Very true. And then that city will take your money one way or another. If it's not from gambling,
it's, but if it's not from gambling, it's from overpriced food. If it's not from overpriced food,
it's from a speeding ticket. So you're so right. Yeah. Money one way or the other. Yes, sir.
I just had some friends from who live in Vegas. They were just in town and complaining about,
they don't gamble and they're complaining about the cost of certain parts of town
going up, even for locals. So anyway, with that, I think we should go ahead and wrap
this NASCAR segment for this week. We'll talk about Darlington next week.
Did you have anything you want to add, Matthew, before we wrap?
No, that was great. Thank you.
All right. We'll go ahead and wrap this NASCAR talk here on this week's Truth About Cars podcast.
Thanks, Matthew. Thanks.
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That's all for today's Truth About Cars podcast. I am Tim Healy, the managing editor,
and you can find us wherever you're podcast. You can also find us online at ttac.com.
That's ttech.com or truth about cars all spelled out.com. We thank Zach Dolomack,
you guys for their time and Matt Poskey for editing. Most of all, we thank you for listening.
We'll see you next time.
About this episode
A deep dive into the 2026 best family cars with Zach Dole from US News & World Report, highlighting Hyundai's dominance in SUVs and EVs, the value of the Kia Carnival minivan, and the evolving role of trucks as family vehicles. The discussion covers safety, reliability, and family-friendly features shaping the rankings. The episode also touches on NASCAR's recent Las Vegas race with insights on Denny Hamlin's milestone win, and practical car care tips focusing on exterior cleaning products from Chemical Guys. The hosts share perspectives on EV trends and upcoming vehicle redesigns, blending data with real-world feedback.
Original notes
Hello and welcome to the Truth About Cars podcast! I am Tim Healey, the managing editor, and this week we’re discussing the best cars for families in 2026.
We dig into that with Zach Doell from U.S. News and World Report. Then TTAC contributor Matthew Guy and I discuss NASCAR at Las Vegas – and exterior cleaning products for your car.
You can find us wherever you get your podcasts. You can also find us online at tee tee a cee dot com, that’s TTAC dot com, or thetruthaboutcars, all spelled out, dot com.
We thank Zach Doell and Matthew Guy for their time and Matt Posky for editing. Most of all, we thank you for listening!
We’ll see you next time!
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